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James Holkins
James Robert Holkins (Born June 18th 1943 in Aberdeen United Kingdoms) best known for his work on portable computing and as head of Im'B incorporated. In 1991 he received citation in the Hall of Future Records as being historically significant. Early Life and Education Holkins was born in Aberdeen Maternity Hospital , to Ramsey Robert Holkins a mechanical engineer and Kathrine Gemma Holkins (nee Hunter) the daughter of a wealthy shop owner. Growing up in a small apartment in near the cities only train station, a time he would later reflect on as extremely formative. At age twenty nine his mother died of a pulmonary heart attack, leaving the eight year old child to raised by various aunties due to his father long working hours he developed in interest in science-fiction. During a field trip to the Engineering Department at the University of Edinburgh Holkins in 1952 wandered off and was accidentally electrocuted by an ungrounded high power Van de Graaff generator. This event introduced Holkins to electronics; he later developed an obsession with Tesla Coils and early computers buying his first tabulation machine in 1959 at age sixteen. Unable to secure a position in the University of Edinburgh, he travelled to Glasgow to study Electrical Engineering. He completed the course at the top of his class being able to explore his interest in Computer Science as an extra credit. Progenitor Electronics At age 19 Holkins was hired by Progenitor Electronics as a researcher, in his first six months he made more than seventy complaints about operational efficiency of the Dundee plant. Most of which where ignored, Holkins began by researching magnetic core memory. He was fired after an eigth month tenure when it was discovered he was using company property to create a non-lethal weapon. This design was apprehended by MI5 , the company trying to sue Holkins for damages for violating a non-military application policy. Holkins responded by suing the company for violating safety laws in its Dundee plant. The company loss both cases, Holkins was paid half a million in legal fee's and damages allowing him to set cover the set-up costs of Im'B. At Im'B See Im'B Holkins met his lifelong friend and colleague Ross McLeod while attending The University of Glasgow. The two met while living in the same Gibson Street accommodation, McLeod being described by his fellow classmates as the acid to Holkins alkaline, being the more sensible of the two. After graduation the two went there separate ways, McLeod as an intern at a local sales firm and Holkins to Dundee. In 1964 the pair met up again after Holkins legal case, the two deciding to start up their own company with the intent of selling accessible computer technologies. The two began work on the Im'B 101 Personal Computation Device. Ross being the less experienced Electrician of the two headed the company as CEO leaving Holkins to work on most of the major projects after the move to Soho . Holkins completed several of the companies first government contracts during the late sixties initiating the companies move to San Francisco. Holkins and McLeod often refer to the next ten years as the golden age of Im'B, the two eager to expand the company's product line began hiring workers from the then defunct Progenitor Electrics to manage the huge demands. Several years before Ross's departure he met Lorraine Walter at the 1981 Consumer Electronics Show, in 1982 Dames Daily magazine published an article suggesting the two were romantically involved, both Walter and Holkins denied the claims. Holkins unable to deal with the business side of the company attempting to complete the L-5 series, hired Walter under McLeod's direction in 1984. The company was forced to stop hiring for the first time in a decade. Walter was accused of undermining the company by Holkins executives who left the research and development department in 1987. Walter was forced to dissolve the company under Holkins instruction later that year. After Im'B Holkins returned to his native Scotland in late 1989 with his wife of seven years Jessica Strauss. Buying a large manor in rural Aberdeenshire he later worked with Dog-Leg Designs on their 2001 best selling game The Final of Quest Part IV the NPC Snik being named after him. Recently he has faded from the public eye, but does have a reguarly updated twitter feed. Personal Life Holkins described his childhood as a lonely one, refusing to play with other children or socialize at family gatherings he was sent to a children's psychologist in early 1952. Holkins initial analysis showed tendencies towards anti-social behaviour, as a result he was instead put forward two years due to what the psychologist described as "complete and total boredom". He met his wife in early 1982 at age 39, at a summit for the future of environmental business practises. She was immediately obsessed with him, they married six months later and had their first child Joseph Strauss-Holkins in June 1984. Controversy Holkins was considered a generally fair employer, but had multiple run-ins with the Police due to disregard for protocol and the law. Between 1959-1989 Holkins had spent a full six weeks behind bars for public drunkeness, disturbance of the peace and public engdangerment the latter due to experiments at the Soho Plant.